Keynote Financial Services LLC Reduces Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Keynote Financial Services LLC reduced its position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 9,254 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 119 shares during the period. Keynote Financial Services LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $997,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Groupama Asset Managment acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,537,000. Zimmer Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the third quarter worth $166,263,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 155.1% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,873,321 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $201,832,000 after acquiring an additional 1,138,979 shares in the last quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 116.5% during the 4th quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 2,065,344 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $222,520,000 after acquiring an additional 1,111,581 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brookfield Corp ON increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 112.6% in the 3rd quarter. Brookfield Corp ON now owns 1,002,811 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $115,624,000 after purchasing an additional 531,073 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $121.62.

Duke Energy Trading Up 1.4 %

NYSE:DUK opened at $117.50 on Friday. Duke Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $90.09 and a 12-month high of $121.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $111.03 and a 200 day simple moving average of $113.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.50.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.90% and a return on equity of 9.50%. Equities research analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.56%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 73.20%.

About Duke Energy

Duke Energy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy company in the United States. It operates through two segments: Electric Utilities and Infrastructure (EU&I), and Gas Utilities and Infrastructure (GU&I). The EU&I segment generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electricity in the Carolinas, Florida, and the Midwest.